WARREN ELLIS is a graphic novelist, writer, public speaker and author of the NYT best-selling novel GUN MACHINE.

Solar Death Ray

Published March 22, 2005 by Warren Ellis

“The Solar Death Ray is made of 112 mirrors mounted on a platform 4 feet wide and 6 feet tall. Each mirror is a square roughly 3.5 inches on edge. All these mirrors focus the sun to a single spot 5 feet, 6 inches from the mirror platform. A wooden fork extends from the mirror base to the area near the focus and serves as a mounting point for Solar Death Ray targets. The mirror platform is mounted to the support frame on a pivot that allows the platform to be angled. The whole system is mounted on a set of wheels.

“I estimate that the Solar Death Ray can heat things up to between 500-600 degrees Celsius 930-1100 degrees Fahrenheit) under good conditions… The â€œoutput powerâ€ of the Solar Death Ray is roughly 1,500 Watts, meaning that 1,500 Watts of energy can be deposited onto a target…”